Wort Chillers - Whats Best?

[yardy]

Just while on this subject, can you post some pictures of different set ups please

here's mine, i bought a couple of kilos of annealed from the scrap bloke in bundy, $10 a kg i think, half an hour and you've got an immersion chiller.

cheers
yard

 

[mikem108]

Plate chiller from Mashmaster. faster and more efficient than my old counter flow, uses far less water and drains quicker.

 

[Kleiny]

Just made a emersion chiller and it works as good as i can hope for
from boil to 20C in around 30min run water from a tank and returns ( no waste)

 

[stueywhytcross]

G'day disco stu.
I use a 9m copper coil that runs directly into a plastic storage crate filled with water and ice.
The wort leaves the kettle straight into the ice bath and then into a plastic cube.
I freeze up about 25L of ice made in old yogurt containers of about 1L each several days before brew day.
After the boil I let it rest for around 10-15 min then gradually add the ice and stir the water continously for about 15-20 min and by adjusting the flow from the kettle tap the temp gets down to 18C even lower if I use slightly more ice and restrict the flow further.

All the water is retained within the platic storage crate and used on the garden.
It takes a bit of planning before brew day, but then I have to do that with yeast anyway.

Been doing this method ever since I started AG 3 years ago, I guess its the "poor mans chiller"

Cheers
BB

Thanks BB, I havn't brewed any all grains yet. Just sussing out the equipment I will need. I just thought it makes sense to quickly cool the wort that way as opposed to a counter flow chiller.
Cheers
Stu.

 

[Tim F]

Plate chiller for me - i can adjust flow rates to adjust the resulting wort temp and with a thermo on the wort outlet of the plate chiller i can see at a glance the temp of my wort. Can get the wort down to below 30 at full throttle in less than 10 mins.

Do you need a pump to use one of these or is it ok to operate/clean with gravity alone?

 

[Julez]

Do you need a pump to use one of these or is it ok to operate/clean with gravity alone?

According to the product description, they work under gravity, but I'd like to know just how well?? Is anyone using a plate chiller without a pump that can shed some light on this?

 

[reVoxAHB]

According to the product description, they work under gravity, but I'd like to know just how well?? Is anyone using a plate chiller without a pump that can shed some light on this?

I did three brews with my plate chiller (ChillOut MKIII) using gravity, before getting a pump. I had to invert the chiller so the name plate was facing down, in order to get it to flow at all. With my rig, the drop from kettle to wort in was only a foot or so. Others have commented they use gravity only without issue, but with a good 2 foot drop (to wort in). Lots of variables here, which could affect flow rate. Hard to advise.

In my case, flow rate using gravity was less than spectacular. With the addition of a pump, I reckon it's the best chiller I've owned. I wish I'd skipped immersion, counter-flow, etc. and just went straight to using a plate chiller.

Hope helps,
reVox

 

[Back Yard Brewer]

Hey BYB,

I hope that was on a 40C day?? I get my wort to 28 C on a 40C day without ice.

Autumn day I usually get to 23

Winter less than 18 C flat out




Darren

Yep on stinking hot days I resort to the extra chiller B) , since it is now winter I have had no problem getting it down to under 20c.

BYB

 

[Julez]

I did three brews with my plate chiller (ChillOut MKIII) using gravity, before getting a pump. I had to invert the chiller so the name plate was facing down, in order to get it to flow at all. With my rig, the drop from kettle to wort in was only a foot or so. Others have commented they use gravity only without issue, but with a good 2 foot drop (to wort in). Lots of variables here, which could affect flow rate. Hard to advise.

In my case, flow rate using gravity was less than spectacular. With the addition of a pump, I reckon it's the best chiller I've owned. I wish I'd skipped immersion, counter-flow, etc. and just went straight to using a plate chiller.

Hope helps,
reVox

Nice one, thanks reVox :icon_cheers:

 

[Back Yard Brewer]

Hey BYB how do your garden hose fittings on your hoses go handling the hot liquid etc? And where did you get that hosing?

Pok

Garden fittings have performed well so far. I have made around 8 AG's. Hosing is just reinforced hose from the local hardware shop not the best stuff to use but is is cheap and works.


BYB

 

[remi]

I've recently purchased a second immersion chiller to use as a pre-chiller- the tap water temperature here was 26C in summer, and last month was still 21C, making it difficult to knock it down to pitching temps quickly- and I don't have a fermentation fridge...

Anyway, with the US dollar being what it is it was cheaper to purchase a chiller from the US and have it shipped- which worked out at about $100. Looking forward to giving it a crack tomorrow- leave it in ice slurry and re-route the tap water through it once the wort is down to 30C or so.

remi

 

[drsmurto]

Do you need a pump to use one of these or is it ok to operate/clean with gravity alone?

Nah, gravity all the way for me. Last brew i had the kettle on the NASA stand on the ground and was still able to chill to 20C. Altho at that low height i have to run it flat out but at this time of the year its fine for ales. For lagers i lift the kettle (yeah, yeah, OH&S yada yada yada) approx 1m off the ground and can control flow better.

 

[warrenlw63]

Interesting thread chaps.

Been contemplating a plate chiller after no chilling for some time. Is it true they (plate chillers) will use far less water than my old immersion chiller?

My main reasoning for reverting back from NC is I'm finding my beers lack hop aroma with this method.

Warren -

 

[drsmurto]

Not sure about water usage as i run mine from a rainwater tank and then feed it straight back in so usage is effectively 0.

From a purely scientific point of view a plate (or CFW) chiller will be more effective as there is a greater contact between the wort and the heat exchanger. As to which one of these is more effective.......

 

[Julez]

Nah, gravity all the way for me. Last brew i had the kettle on the NASA stand on the ground and was still able to chill to 20C. Altho at that low height i have to run it flat out but at this time of the year its fine for ales. For lagers i lift the kettle (yeah, yeah, OH&S yada yada yada) approx 1m off the ground and can control flow better.

DrSmurto, you use gravity for the wort AND gravity for the water?

 

[drsmurto]

Gravity for the wort and the pump attached to the rainwater tanks to drive the water thru the chiller.

 

[Back Yard Brewer]

Looking forward to giving it a crack tomorrow- leave it in ice slurry and re-route the tap water through it once the wort is down to 30C or so.

remi

Be carefull about putting it in ice. You may freeze it up. Best to pass hot wort through first then dump it in ice. I am talking from experince.

BYB

 

[Murray]

Hi Captain

If you're going to buy a March pump (see bulk buy) then I would definitely try a whirlpool immersion chiller, http://www.mrmalty.com/chiller.php

I have a normal immersion, a convoluted CF chiller and a whirlpool chiller. The whirlpool chiller (combined with settling overnight in the boiler in the cool evenings in Melb) is as quick as the convoluted CF chiller but has the advantage of leaving the cold break behind. I did a 45L batch of Kolsch on the w/e and the runoff out of teh boiler was crystal clear. I havnt tried a plate chiller.

Cheers
Simon

Top idea. I think I'll pull the old immersion chiller out and give it a go.

 

[big d]

Using these cooler months to my advantage at the moment until i hook up the shed rainwater tank to the immersion coil.
Just run the wort into a cube then drop it into the pool for a while and when the temp is looking good its straight into the fermenter.
Works for me.

Cheers
Big D

 

[WitWonder]

According to the product description, they work under gravity, but I'd like to know just how well?? Is anyone using a plate chiller without a pump that can shed some light on this?

Plate chiller, gravity fed here. I have a block & tackle which my boiler is hooked up to so at the end of the boil I hoist it up to around 1m off the ground and it's fine.